Yo, what's up people? I'm your host Jay Will and I would like to welcome you to inspire guys people where we balance faith and business To guide you to your purpose. This is episode 219. What is it called music business and ministry?
I got a guest today Courtney Moore that I'm gonna be talking to she is an entrepreneur worship leader a singer producer But she's the founder and CEO of the music firm in Detroit the music firm Detroit is located in LaVona And we're gonna talk about her business. We gonna learn a lot about her journey She is like I said a minister so she's been involved in the church world in the music world in the business world And y'all know this show is all about balance and faith in business I've watched Courtney from afar and I could tell you she carries herself really well her business is a very dope business And it's something that I'm like man once I get back into music a little bit I need to find a way to get myself over there to the music firm in some capacity But I'm looking forward to diving into her story today as y'all know in general with inspire guys people We've been talking a lot about death to poverty So you can look forward to that type of content to continue to come as well as you know I'm saying following us on YouTube at inspire guys people But look we're gonna dive into this conversation today man And I want you all to like share comment subscribe all that good stuff today is all about learning about Courtney Moore and her journey through faith And business up without further ado my people Courtney Moore what's up? How you doing? Hello?
I'm good. How are you? I'm great. Welcome to inspire guys people.
I know that um, you know, it's a Monday busy day crazy, so I got you here on a Monday, but we gonna have a good time, you know I'm gonna jump right into this Courtney and kind of diving into a little video story We talked a little bit off air and like, you know the fact that we're both, you know in Detroit on the music scene sounds Like we probably been around each other but never really officially met So this is really dope like to actually get to meet somebody that I just have seen on the internet and probably been around in real life A different event so nice to meet you Courtney nice to meet you too nice to meet you too And thank you again so much for having me on your show tonight. I am just I'm so happy I'm just happy no doubt so look you do a lot of things from music ministry and business I want to start let's start on the the ministry side, right? Okay, you tell us a little bit about yourself Just um, you know, did you grow up in church? Mm-hmm Someone that kind of like you know grew up, you know out here in these streets and you have to find a Lord What was that journey like for you?
Just you know coming to the Lord and what's your journey like been just in ministry itself? So I grew up in church. Um, my mom was back in like the late 80s early 90s She was prevalent in music ministry singing around different churches and um So when I was three months She had me like going around churches with her, you know, because she like look, this is what I do I'm not about to slow down. So I'm about to be carrying his baby with me everywhere I go and so um I mean music ministry was just embedded in me ministry was embedded in me.
Um, but but more so my mom taught me how to worship God Um, she taught me the elements of worship. Um, she taught me the beauty and corporate worship And one thing she would always tell me, um, you know back in the you know early 90s and stuff It wasn't prevalent, you know for a lot of that's when the church was kind of making the transition into like the prophetic sound And to worship and everything from, you know, the traditional sound and one of her biggest things Well, she even you know would send me to you know, uh, multicultural schools and stuff like that Her biggest thing was when we get to heaven There's gonna be all kind of people in heaven So her biggest thing when it came to worship with me was making sure that she um developed the sound in me that could reach all people so um And it started really really early with with my mom for me. Yeah, really really early. Um, you know how you would church kid and you stray away and you do your You do your stuff and you strap me.
Come on. I straight away Don't want to listen and don't want to you know do all that kind of stuff But truly I am a product of train up a child of the way that he should go She should go and when she is he is old she's old. They will not depart So, you know, I am a product of that and um I've been in the church all my life. I um come from uh greater urban user under the murphy's So that's definitely, you know where we crossed paths before, you know, 100 Yeah, and um as you know that that that that church of that family is very big in worship of music and stuff So it was just it just happened with me.
So it just it was just bound to kind of happen Just the it just fell on me. I love that like yeah So I got some follow-up. So what you just said like the first thing i'm curious about this is like a little you know, maybe side bar But it's interesting to me that that small lesson your mom taught you about worship and how heaven will be in reaching our people How has that impacted you just as you've grown through life, right? You said did you say you went to multicultural schools and things like that?
Yeah, tell me a little bit like like what was that like and how was that impacted you having those multicultural experiences and maybe that perspective? Um, you know, how has it you know impacted your life? It was tough growing up. It was definitely tough growing up because although that's the way my mom was Um at some point in my childhood she became a single parent So she relied heavily on my grandmother and my grandfather and my grandmother is from Mississippi and my grandfather is from Tennessee So he's like, I don't trust these kind of people.
I don't know why you gotta go here. I don't know why you got, you know So it was it was difficult. Um, but my mom You know saw who I would you know one day become it so even with her making the decision to send me and not just me But my sister's way up but to send us to multicultural schools Um, it was just to cultivate what she knew we would be what what she knew we would become it So it was very very, you know difficult living almost in two different cultures because at church all my friends are black And at school, you know, I'm saying it's only two or three of us. I just didn't I just did not fit in You know, it was just it was it was quite a time, but um I wouldn't take anything from my journey, you know, I'm saying I'm grateful for the experience Um, because it has really blessed me to be able to you know Know the heart of all people and when we're talking about worship, um, primarily corporate worship I think sometimes that's where we um, not miss it But it would be to our benefit that we understand Um, the heart of the people so that it's easier for us in corporate worship to get people all the one accord You get what I'm saying?
Understanding if if I understand your heart and I think that's what we're seeing in things like maverick city And um, you know, chanler more and we're seeing this inner twine and Travis green with elevation worship We're seeing seeing these sounds kind of intertwined, but that's because we've got two different cultures or two different, you know, backgrounds Really getting to understand each other's hearts and understand how we worship, you know, because that's the biggest thing I'm sorry. What better place. No, you're good. It's no, that's great.
Like it's like a better place And I love that because I believe as a church, you know, we should be leading Like the narrative in the world It's a powerful narrative of like to have you know, think of heaven or right like think of that concept of like versus only reacting to the negative side We know things that happen in you know, look my grandma one of my grandmothers is from Alabama Kansas City to my grandma's from Alabama actually so, you know, I understand I think sometimes we don't we don't take a step back and actually think about where their Perspective is coming from sometimes we just take the baton and carry it, but there are elements of like, yo, I get it I get it grandma in Alabama, you know, in the 1940s like that's a wild time I would never argue you I need to push this forward, right? So I think that's dealt with your mind there for you because I'm sure as a business person, right? As you've grown like you have to be able to reach and connect with other other cultures and people both in Ministry and in business. That's why I love business because it's not a bubble.
Absolutely. You know, otherwise you kind of stuck in the bubble So that's that's that's that's that's pretty dope that absolutely kind of took that route with you And then you know when you when you talk about like growing up in church I'm curious because I grew up in church too Like what do you think for you? What's the pro and what's the con of that experience? Not that you would ever like I don't have kids like not that I would never tell my kids like oh because of the cons I don't want you to grow up in church and I'm just saying from having that experience I have in my mind a couple pros and cons.
I'm curious how you feel just going through that experience And like you said kind of wavering in and out and everything like that like what are the pros and cons in your life of that experience? So one of the cons for me, um And this is a con that I'm praying to just be completely released from is Thinking that the four walls or the church that I'm at or the churches that I'm connected to are the world and that's it So we don't understand life outside of the church. Um, we don't understand Certain levels of professionalism. We don't um understand business or we don't understand um You know a lot of other things because We've become so um Our mindset is just church church church outside of church.
We don't know how to it's almost like we create We create this hub. You know what call it? Or like that we create like this. It's like we're secluded.
You know what I'm saying It's like and then we have that secluded mindset and we don't know anything outside of Church and the people that we're with you know, even relationally, you know what I'm saying? So that's that's um one of the biggest cons that I see and um, I believe that it's also one of the Reasons why God trusted me into the music for the way that he did and I know what probably did, you know, you know To that in a minute. So I don't want to move a head of you. So you're going to church in me You see what I'm saying?
It's I will never forget My first real job like my first dopest job was with you ago and um, it was like my first professional job. I was a patient care tech for Um a van clinic and it was the most prominent van clinic in the region with the best van doctors Um ever shot out to dr. Emily Cummings dr. Lisa and botanjillo now shot out to y'all But they're still my they're still my friends shot out to valerie all y'all with something but the best job that I ever had And I'll never forget um, I was talking to one of the young ladies that worked with me And I said um absolutely because if i'm breaking bread with you then you must mean something to me And she just was like what?
What are you? What are you talking about? What you know, so it's like and I knew then like This is just I'm too churchy like I'm too God can't you even use me here because I am just too in this bubble, you know So that's one of the biggest kinds the biggest pros will always be and I'll say this Some of my best friends are in the church I mean Them school friends that came and they went But them church friends that fit when you grow up in church and you you you got them people that are not your biological aunties and aunties But they're your aunties enough. I'm sorry your uncle's and aunties, but they are your uncle's and aunties They remain that for forever.
So one of the pros for me has been the relationships You know that have that I have you know, uh developed by being born and raised in the church I mean you just don't get that kind of that kind of kindred that family, you know unit Um, it's been a beautiful thing and it's something that I even encourage my friends or um, you know other people like hey Those church somebody said come to you know those covenant relationships those covenant relationships those those those kind of boo What's up? Yeah, so I mean I I You know that's that's dope. So both of those just like you know going back to the con a little bit I think I couldn't agree more right like so, you know the interesting thing for me to personally I grew up in both home church And you know traditional church between mom and dad's home And so like you know home church is completely different than traditional church and so it's your point of culture, right? I kind of related to people who are bilingual.
I'm so intrigued like I was in Mexico a couple weeks ago And um, you know, I watch a lot of youtube videos because I'm trying to I'm trying to learn Spanish like in my spare time Just on like youtube or something. It's not going to go by the way Keep at it my brother. Yeah, I want to get in pressure to nobody that I'm actually doing a good job with it You know it's it's happening and um So but I relate like the church experience in culture to like somebody who's bilingual Um, when I was in Mexico, I um, what did I say to this? I don't know if it was just oolai whatever It was something basic that I said to one of my waiters His eyes lit up and he was like oh, oh, it's been yo.
I was like no Mm-hmm. No, I'm excited right though. It's like that's kind of how we are when we grow up in church Sometimes I'm not this ain't like, you know, hopefully people take it for the context of what we're saying Right, right? Right whereas you grow up and you learn church and you know it and you know how to navigate it But then the rest of the world sometimes you have to be bilingual It doesn't mean you have to do the things the world does come on But you need to know how to navigate come on Have to come on some of us can't even minister to people or grow professionally or whatever or grow our own businesses without that crutch And the one thing I'll say there too is like The one trick the one tricky thing about church is it is it also produces a lot of opportunity So like my family my brothers most of my a lot of my family work in church So that can be a crutch because if your salary coming from this place Your position everything you almost don't have to operate outside of the church sometimes No, and so it can limit you but then I also agree with the pro right and it's not here they go hand-in-hand The opportunities right, you know that you know, it's kind of dope kind of cool Shout to the people showing you love out in the comments Yeah, you just definitely don't have to have you so learning a little bit about your background obviously just in Ministry knowing that you grew up in church.
I'm kind of talk about like wavering away I'm curious what you think about this. This is one of my cons when it comes to growing up in church And it's gonna maybe sound weird. Sometimes I'm jealous of people who guys say when they were older and here's why Like when you grow up in church and you go through those experiences of wavering and like those struggles There could be a lot of pressure because a lot of times you already You were already in church. You already know the lures so that guilt and like that In a way in that backsliding is like it's hard to deal with versus like somebody who just out here wilding out and it's like oh You know what I love god and they kind of get that fresh start of like, you know, not saying they won't ever go through that too But I don't know if I don't know if you feel that way if it was hard for you when you were making mistakes Maybe the pressure of reputation family like it's so much that comes with trying to uphold the Responsibility of what people think of you sometimes when you when you are a good person growing up in church Right, absolutely.
I mean that that has been I mean the Bible says all have seen fall short of his glory You know, so that has been you know my testimony on my journey as I have you know failed short in areas You know when you fall short and you you know finally decide okay This isn't the path that I'm supposed to be on, you know, and the Lord starts really you back in You know you kind of do look up and you'd be like wow, you know, I'm kind of envious of those that you know Live their life and now they're 30 They are oh, thank you Jesus. Oh, how do we owe but they done got a chance to club They done got a chance to date and you know do what they wanted to do They got a chance to freely, you know, explore life and live life and so I think um, you know Our biggest thing is um ballots in a really understanding, you know balance and um I hope that's something that we can do um for this generation isn't still in them as much as we instill You know the church principles and the principles of God and everything that we also instill different scriptures that you know Our inclusiacies that talks about, you know, nothing new under the sun and because there's nothing new under the sun There's no time to waste live your life have fun, you know those types of things should be preached um You know within reason so that that Invenous, you know that that that envious or that you know That time where you are kind of looking like well, dang, you know Shoot, I'm trying to recover all and this person, you know, absolutely I've been there so many times it's it's it's tough to when you come into um the real realization That God does want you to be happy and God does want you to enjoy he said I put these things here for your benefit You know, um so and that's that's a whole another topic, but yeah, but it's a good point, right? I love what you said about us because to guess what that's the thing that sometimes get missed Um, we have to give each other grace There's obviously a thin line between like nobody saying we want to promote seeing it And I think that's tricky because what I know this is a lot of people live on extremes They're either like man. It's like they believe you should do everything or it's like hey Do nothing and I do think we have to find a way within the biblical context I do think there's a way to to kind of have that balance without going too far having an sermon knowing when you're going too far Um, but look that's the beauty of life life is not this um black and white So easily easy to navigate, you know There's gonna be things that you have to struggle through whether you can't in charge or not Absolutely that was just one of those random things so for you like okay We heard a little bit about kind of life in ministry I'm really curious.
Um, how you got let's go music because I know you played a lot of instruments You've done everything from juice. I believe you're a worship or no you're a lead musician So to talk about like your life through music and how you navigate it and grown and maybe share some of those experiences because it sounds like you have quite a few musical experiences Um, you know that probably shaped who you are today Wow, um, I always now don't get me wrong My mom, you know is my musical hero. She was a um, Wayne state Music major. She actually majored in um liberal arts, but minored in music And so when it got time for me to go to college, I'll say this and then I'll come around and answer your question Um, she said now look you want to do music, but I'm telling you now you are not cut for Wayne state Music department.
Okay. Wow because you've got a study. She said it's like going to be in school So what I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna send you to this Christian school I said here we go again. It's multicultural I think she always thought that I was gonna be an artist or something or you know She just always saw a figure, you know, and um Always tried to push for that.
Um, but with that being said, um, with her being one of my biggest musical influences She made sure that we were um, you know that we reached other people, you know other races of people But my mom made sure I understood the importance of other genres of music. Okay So, um I am a lover of music. I love music. Okay.
Um, it was my mom that introduced me to Motown It was my mom that introduced me to Mozart Um, genocity. It was my mom that introduced me to the Hawkins family It was my mom that introduced me and told me the story of Matty Moss Clark and the Clark sisters and how she tried out for the choir And all these different things and all these different all these different stories Um about uh, the maestro coming up and um, how my bishop who was our bishop, mercury jr He and her and they went to Wayne state together and how they would be going around doing groups and choirs and they was the baddest thing You know, it's always my mom. And so she really um is the reason why I love music so much And so um when I was younger I was so just artsy and I kind of wish I could almost get back to that, you know, um before life, you know, start life and life start happening I was so mute, you know what I'm saying? I was so musical.
I was so creative and um My love for music was so evident. I think it was more excused when I was younger, you know To be able to um branch out. Oh my god. Is y'all your little cranny?
She playing um, uh, listen that's your day Challenge will tell you chose, you know, that kind of stuff, you know what I'm saying just just musical influences Um, midnight china jorid, you know that hip hop come out Not just I mean arrested development. I mean all of these just different things Um until I start showing trouble in my in my teenage years and she realized okay, you go into sleep To this stuff because I love music. I mean when I tell you I loved music I loved it like I would listen to something you cry. I love music like I loved it Like I loved it I would listen to something and it would just have me in a chokehold and my mom like this Okay, this is a little bit on this a little bit unhealthy.
That's all I was showing some um Issues in school, you know, some of them those bad days and um when I came home from school I had all of these posters in my room, right? So I come home from school one day and I go in my room All the posters are in the garbage All of my cd all of my cd's I'm still man All of my cd's are broken in the trash and she's like we get ready to change What you letting because now I got to be mama beer and I got a guard what's coming in your spirit because Your call is bigger than just music. You you're not going to just be someone that Does music but guys going to use your Courtney and I have and so that's been that's that's one of my biggest wrestles to this day When I get to that place because I'm starting to get back there with music where it's like, okay Because I'm a tour now spiritually. So it's like I'm like to listen to cool like that.
It's good way. I'm about to just I'm about to you know and all of you know You know what I'm saying? So I mean um, I still wrestle with I don't want to say wrestle, but There's the call to ministry and there's you have when you're called to music ministry There's a difference. How people are just called to music but when you're called to music ministry, you have to protect What goes into your spirit?
So that's been my love that's been kind of my Over the years um when it comes to music I did study music my vehicle to the disc to learn um studio engineering and production She said you're minor in music at um making business minor music at uh Rochester Um christian college and um Rochester. He was michigan. Um, then I started to pursue a career in music therapy And it got was like no, you gotta do the song So you it's it's really dope like first of all your mother that was a mastery level of parents into me And um, that's not you know, again, I don't have children, but I'm the oldest and not a sibling I've seen a lot of parents. I've seen a lot of parents.
Um, and I got 20 nieces and nephews. Oh, yeah, um a couple of my brothers, you know, they got families of like four or five So that knock it out right there on that way, but Shout out to my family But my point is like that's a mastery level of parents because I just see it around me Parents I see my parents they struggle with sometimes that balance of like, you know, we had to just like When to get a little show a little tough love for your children Yeah, it says something super important about the need to protect your spirit when you went in certain positions sure And I think as believers that's one of the ways we have to mature Not every message is a universal message. Me and what I mean by that is like you'll see somebody argue like what's wrong with this Or what's wrong with that? Well, it's like well, it's no different than if if I'm a doctor of performance surgery And it's a big deal if I got lapi taffy on my fingers You you know, just at cedar point and what you will you not a doctor You not a surgery and when you are in ministry and you're gonna win things at a certain level and with a certain Intention where you have that impact you do have to guard yourself Yeah, it doesn't necessarily even mean like you said you're struggling through it.
I've struggled through similar like I can relate to that 100% Um you want to be genuine and protected in what you're doing You also understand that the power of something because I'm creating something and I'm saying it's powerful over here Um the in the Bible and ecclesiastes one and 18 It's one of my favorite scriptures. It says with what with much wisdom comes much grief And people don't understand sometimes when you have wisdom you can see The you can see where something leads and it makes a challenge. So thanks for sharing that. I believe that's gonna help somebody Um now what can you tell them just a little sidebar about like what intro what instruments do you play or did you play?
Um and did that come natural or was it like learned like I'm curious is this musical ability like your mom did music You mentioned sister is it like that? My mom My mom was the most musical person, you know in my family Um the most musical person in my family, but as far as like playing instruments Um, you know, it started off just in church, you know watching, you know I don't know why I was drawn to instead of me being drawn to direct into choir I'm drawn to musicians, you know, I know a little girls about a drone's waiting on their turn to play, you know But I'm waiting on my turn like a little boys, you know waiting on their turn to play the drums and I they would give me a turn You know, they would they would give me a turn and um, you know, my mom saw that and she would, you know, buy me instruments and different things Um the musicians at the church saw it and they didn't treat me any different and once I found out at early age that I had an ear You know that I had an ear. I just like I would just pick up I used to just carry a acoustic guitar around me everywhere And sometimes my mom would be like, okay, you can't take that quickly Not to where we're like, I'm on my way. Why?
You can't take that, you know, you're not about to just sit, you know, somewhere and just Fiddle on that she used to just be so irritated with me, you know, very peculiar kid Very if anybody on here remembers me as a child and very very very different and you know, um So it started off with just feeling on the acoustic which I did not Cultivate that because if you know anything about um Like anything about playing an instrument if you can't just devote your entire life to it You know, you better pick one that you that you better that you better on or the one that you love the most And so piano for me, although I can play drums. I can play a little bit of acoustic guitar I can play a little bit of bass. Um, I can play the violin. Um, yep.
Yep. I can I can play the violin. Um, what else? I'm really sleeping on that.
You asked that recorded as something. No, I'm really sleeping on your music And that I mean, I'm curious. I'm very I'm very I'm very um I'm very like low key with it. It's you know, it's a little insecure there, you know, too when it comes like to the other You know instruments, but um keys keys is my like, you know, my my love.
I love the piano. I love how it sounds And so that's the one that um just just stuck with me. That's the one that I that's my main instrument And that's what you actively playing right? Yep.
That's what I'm actively playing. Yep. For sure for sure. Shout out to everybody in the comments I don't know if there's a family or friend this carla I'm like, I'll be here with the Spanish you are for that.
That's that's classic carla boo Those are those are those church friendships that I was telling you about you might not talk every day But oh my goodness the love the love you know what on that on that um line of thought too Because you can talk a little bit about those relationships earlier Like for me, I want to just kind of shine a light on something just with the church in general positive, right? And the church It has so much opportunity that like you talk about that experience of sitting and waiting on the drums It's like my brother's real, you know, real hits play the drums getting started in drums Um, you know, my family Dominique was singing like Father was quiet directed so I grew around all that and I played the drums in school I never was a church musician, but um, I know that feeling of watching my brother's weight Now my nephew's saying thing like wait in the plate of drums and one of the beautiful things about church Is it gives you an opportunity to find something you're good at? Positive is a grown up in the church because you'll go to school. Yep And sometimes kids ain't doing nothing like you like in church you like oh man I didn't by 12 I didn't already lay at songs in the choir play drums and spoke mind Like so it is a that's one of the beautiful things about church culture growing up there And then the other thing about the church culture and I'm just thinking of this here You talk about some of your experiences Like we really are in like gospel Hollywood and it's like sometimes we don't realize like the richness of the people and the names and the talent Like just to grow up around all these people that you know go out and make it and do big things and ministry That's one of the things I think Detroit don't get talked about enough of like the people who are from here in the music world And the fact that like, you know, we are friends and family with all these people like, you know And they going out and traveling the world and you know major names So I love that about Detroit where you like all the big gospel names like oh, yeah, I'm on the basketball team with this one Oh, I know this one I go to that one so that's super dope Um transition a little bit into the business Um, you know kind of heard about your you know background and ministry background and music both of those are rich You talked about going to college at Rochester College, which I graduated from Oakland University right around the corner from Rochester College So, whoa, depending on what years we might have crossed paths and I'm not gonna put us out there like that, but right Talk about a little bit of the business where now you find yourself as the CEO of the music firm You know, tell us a little bit about how how did that come about?
Um, and which are journey and venture like in business in another song So, um You talked about coming from a family of musicians or family of people excuse me that I'm using I come from although I don't come from a family of people that's in music. I come from a family of business owners Business is engraved in my blood. Okay, so I love business. I love everything about it I love the you know economical Principles of business.
I live by them. I teach them. I I teach my my teenagers. Um, when they come in here for music I find ways to intertwine business principles with the music.
It's what I do. I have I have a book out now. Um, I wrote this in 2019, but it's just I don't really advertise it Probably like I should but um and here I have a whole chapter about my love for music I mean my love for business and the intertwining of music and just basic business principles that have nothing to do with Money because if you know anything about business money is just a result of We ain't clear but Business so business isn't business is in my business is in my blood. My father um was a business owner In the 90s.
He owned homes. Um, he and my uncle actually painted bakers Bible bookstore. Um, when they were laid off at the um, what for so whenever you get laid off for it will do they lay offs They will go and they would um, you know, they would go and do handyman work You know because they just were so business minded he owned homes. Um, he was in real estate.
Um, my mother Comes from a background of business. Um, my mom was a taxpayer advocate So she would advocate for people that owe back taxes more so in businesses that businesses that owe taxes She would advocate for them. Um, and then my family we own a group home to this day Where we um, yeah, where we house um, women that have mental disabilities And um, we have one here and then one of my cousins have reached out and done An expansion in Arizona. So business is in my blood.
I love numbers. I love everything about business I remember one time I was standing in the um, you know how you go to prophetic church and then you do the prophetic Presspeteries and this one guy gonna call no names. He was accurate, but I ain't gonna call no names He goes he goes. What do you do for a living here?
I am I'm thinking I'm getting ready to get you know Word about yeah, prophesy to about the piano because you know or music or something and he goes I know you play the piano, but why am I saying you could have been in the column? Wow I used to I used to just take numbers on a calculator just going going going I asked my mom how to um I had to compute my own taxes at like 19 20 So I've been computing my own taxes since I was 19 20 years old. So business the concept of business I eat it. I drink it.
I sleep it. I wake up to it. Sometimes I can't turn it off I'm just always just thinking of ways, you know, I love that. Yeah, I don't I don't meet many people that talk about Business with a glow and they I like you just did This is my like I literally love business business is so underrated and like understanding it, you know, I mean and I suppose I'm curious for you like where does that?
Alright, obviously your father your mother like you you've been around business in family business But like I guess how I'll say this for me A lot of it is the principles that I think that people overlook that come from business And you were about to make a statement and maybe this is a better way for me to get the answer Ask this question. You just said money is just a result of dot dot dot and I want you to finish that since Of what that means and can you unpack that a little bit money is just a result of what Money is just a result of the resources that you create to generate it That's all it is That's all just because you get a lot of money don't mean you or that your business owner Um because you have to have you have to understand how to build You have to understand how business is built how it's framed And if you have the mindset to understand how businesses are built how they're framed Um how they work The money will the money will be a result It's just a result of how you of how you frame and how you built, you know your business I see a lot of people nowadays Or nowadays like I'm a grandma somebody but I see a lot of people, you know, and we all do it to some extent I've done it with this, you know, but I've been convicted as well. We'll take you know, we'll get an idea And we'll go get some t-shirts. We'll get a logo But we have no no business because we haven't started the framework, you know, um, we'll start working on those outside Components, but we don't really know.
Um, and I'm gonna steal this from one of my business mentors Marcus Lemones You ever heard of Marcus Lemones? I haven't Okay, Marcus Lemones, he goes by the three-piece process people and product Process people process people and product if you do not have a process for your business Everything folks if you do not understand the people that you're working with that you're working under that you're working for Your consumers then your business will follow and if you have bad product so that can even be Um services that that falls under that that line of product So if you have those amazing three-piece money, you don't have to worry about that So I think we try to go after the bag with no strategy So that's why on my shirt I have the music arm but on the back of it. It says strategy secures the bag I love it. Um, I love that both in business and personal life because to your point, right?
I think a lot of people struggle because you said this is an important thing like money is the result, right? And when people chase the result, they don't understand the input And so if you do these things, you know, like, you know, I just did a show and I And we don't have to unpack this at all because it's super controversial maybe especially on the surface But I said when he does grow in trees have a whole anybody I want to check it out Inspire guys people in YouTube. I got a whole 20 minutes talking about how money does grow in trees But I said it's just essentially that money is a seed seeds grow fruit of their kind A seed and good ground it grows fruit of its kind and so if you focus on the planting and where you're planting and how you nurture it That's like the period of the sewers like you can have the same seed, but if you plant it in background versus good ground And I think what happens to your point is that you don't have a strategy in business or a process That's background. Yep, even if the idea is good.
It's like, you know, well, how are you gonna do that? And I think a lot of people miss that. Why do you think Um, and this this is to hopefully help someone I'm not sure it's negative Absolutely. What do you think it is that that is blocking people from seeing that?
So like especially like in the church world, yeah, ideas again because of that opportunity and access people just throw ideas Left and right and we put God on it and I'll understand in business and it's like that's not gonna work But what's blocking us? I'm trying to I'm trying to like break down that barrier. What would you tell someone that has been having bad ideas? What are they missing in particular?
To understand how to start a strategy? Um, I think they just don't we just don't know all of us because there were you know, just times where I wanted to do different things And I just didn't know, you know, I did not know that this idea is good. You know, I've written the vision I've made a plane pro-co-ta-by Shokotai I've done all that. I've shouted I've you know stumped I've commanded heaven You know and I've wrote the vision and I've made the vision plane but We miss the church sometimes can miss the practical and I think for the for the church.
That's where we miss it Okay, you've done everything on the spiritual side, but the practical God is still very much so practical as well You know, you have to have a process for whatever you are going to build whatever you're going to start Like for instance, you want to start a group home. You have to have the licensees for that You have to have the correct home. You have to be able to you know, um, know the right people You have to know exactly what kind of people do you want to house? But then once you take it from there, you have to process you have to go to the process It's what's going to be your process for intake because what we do is we do that And then we advertise we get all of these great websites all of these great different things and when people start coming We can't retain them because we have no process What is your intake process?
It's utter chaos because you're kind of learning as you go and don't get me wrong You're going to learn as you go regardless of where you are in business But those processes that you know, you put in place they're built To secure and to make your business sustainable Just the sustainability. Hey, look, I love that because sustaining something is important like we focus on obtaining like all right I want to obtain something and you get it and then yeah, all right cool I got this business now I started and we don't know how to sustain it and then we end up just going from one thing to another because Like you said, we don't we haven't focused on the education part And that's really what it comes down to is right always tell people you have to respect I respect the craft of anything I do new whether I'm using podcasts and whatever it is It's like I respect this craft and I think my my biggest thing about us as believers is we're in a very tricky world And I'm gonna tell you it's because we think when God tells us something it means that all right tomorrow you about to just And we start walking in that but we're not looking at the word She also received his dream at 17 years old that didn't come into fruition So he was late 30s. David was anointed as a king got around 15 years old and didn't even touch the throne into his 30s And so what happens is we get anointed like we've been saying oh you anointed to do such a such a such a start walking around like we've been appointed It's like hold on breath. You would anointed but you still got a you still have to live life grow and be in beer and ready for that So, um, I love I love what you saying about that because I think that's what helps us again This show is really about breaking down those barriers.
Yeah and trying to help people Um kind of see the trees through the forest. Yeah, so to say yeah, yeah, yeah You know you talk about the music firm tell us about what the music firm actually is I got I got printed out because it's So I'll let you kind of explain the business But I love what I see both online and we got the website is the music firm Detroit calm So y'all please make sure y'all go music firm and um Courtney's gonna tell us why what do y'all do Courtney? So, um, I always wanted to be an entrepreneur I always knew that I would be you know some form of an entrepreneur Um, but I'm just so ever grateful that I can put my two loves together music and you know business I I love them. So I'm enjoying the journey.
Although the journey um has it's who has its ups and his downs Oh my god, you know, but um, I'm doing what I love. I'm doing my passion, you know, and um With that being said I started the music firm So that awesome job that I was telling you about they ended up you have ended up closing our department They ended up making the decision that they were going to just you know because you know if you have them hospital So they made the decision that they were going to just take what we were doing and move the doctors to the hospital and use the staffing that we're at the hospital So we kind of all just um, either they put us in other clinics or we just you know They paid us for a month or so and was like, you know, sorry, you know, that type of thing So it kind of pushed me into this place. But as we were um And I had always had a heart to train up, you know and to just you know, um help musicians and singers um kind of Understand the balance between that music and that ministry type of thing And I was people was just calling me out the blue like musicians assist. Can we talk?
You know, can we talk? I'm consulting and I don't even know that I'm consulting. So at that point, you know, as my job was transitioning I remember I would be asking for like breaks on my job so I can go and talk to pastors who was looking for musicians And I noticed it's like you you're looking for a musician, but you're looking for a minister of music You're not you you're asking so there is there is a supply and demand You can't get what you need because you don't understand your demand Yeah, they're going to that business model again You don't you can't your your vision can't be supplied what they need because you're demanding the wrong thing You're at you're looking for a musician and these musicians are not staying because now you're asking them or requiring them to sing To to preach to do all of this but you just hired them to be a musician. So oh, okay.
I'm okay. Come on my office Check for you know, just help me Again, the money is just a result What of what you do so I was like Is this is this a business like this is this is something this is a ministry This is some type of ministry business. So I was um, I was already functioning and so we were getting ready to transition from the job in my manager She was like according to what are you gonna do? She was a Christian.
She was a believer I said, I don't know. I think God is calling me to like like this music ministry consultant type of thing And she said I see it. You know what is she because I said what she said the music for her I say yo, that is so dope the next day. I gave her my two weeks The next day I gave her my two years.
This was the end of 2015 Eight years old. It'd be nine years at the end of this year. Yeah, congratulations Thank you was the end of 2015 and at that moment it was just kind of still in its empty stages Um, and um, I was still functioning still helping pastors still, you know, um counseling or consulting with worship leaders Whatever and kind of sending pastors what they needed and all that kind of stuff and um, what's my mom? Of course, I say mom.
This is what I've been doing and look what I got. She said so you know what you gotta do You gotta go down, you know to um Downtown you have to register your business name once you register your business name I'm we're giving we're giving some goodies right now. We're giving some goodies I'm about to tell you what you do. I'm about to tell you what you do You go down with your what's your what's your city?
You register that name once you register that name with your county Then you go to the IRS website and you get your EIN you register your name Once you register your name, you get your LLC once you get your LLC now do our business And so that's what I did. That's that's what I did the next day the next day. Um, and so at that point, um, after I did that I went and got some real sure as made and um At that time, I'm gonna get to where we are now at that time Like I said, it was just kind of the music firm was it was like the music firm worship consulting And it was just like I was more so kind of get because I was in school pursuing my own degree for um, music therapy Um, and so it was more so just doing piano lessons for people that wanted to play in churches but didn't have the um, you know, the musicians could show them so that's what the firm was about It was just about lessons. It was just about doing consulting.
Okay. So then we fast forward we fast forward to um, the pandemic And right before the pandemic my mom drops a mommy and she said according I'm sick I said, okay, I said, well, why are you always busy? But you always, you know, come through. She said no, I'm sick Said I've got an incurable cancer, you know, and um, I'm gonna need you and I came off my job and um, I stopped the firm So that I could take care of my mom and um, you know, she paid pay my bills for me.
Um Um, you know, I took care of her and right at the beginning of the pandemic I would be um, I was still like I had a couple of like little lessons because that's like I'm the type of person I'm not like just letting nobody take care of me, you know, so I still had a couple of like little lessons I was doing virtual and so my mom and I we were back and forth hospital back and forth going through just so much in the pandemic chemo Just all this is just crazy. And so she said Courtney. She said I'm gonna help you. She said what I want you to do Is she said this is what I see for the music firm and she said I got to do this.
She said I have to do this This is my last my assignment. She said You're consulting but she said the music firm is a firm that means you're not just one thing you're a firm She said you offer your resource center. So she said your music ministry is just an aspect of the firm She said but as you consult and as you send all of these pastors and tell them what they need to get for their audio What they need to get for this and you send them to the guitar center She said they need to be able to come to you and get everything under one umbrella She said so we're gonna make this a firm. She said I want you to go and I want you to find a spot And I want you to find a good spot and we're gonna put the music firm and we're gonna do this And so I began to I was like, okay.
I had to move quick. I began to um at that point our again, we talked about that framework we began to change from um Just in one vein to opening up to the world Becoming a business or ministry in the marketplace Not just, you know, um literally in the marketplace not, you know, um, you know, in the church just in the background Yeah, that type of thing, you know, um, and so she said I want you to find a place long story short Took her to one place or my uncle didn't like that place took him to this place. She said that's it She said this is the place and so from that moment on we got started And so um it morphed into us being able to connect Um our customers and our clients with instruments if they wanted to buy from us after we consulted Um to us being so what we are now this is let me slow down what we are now So we more from there into what we have now and what we have now is um Um, you six or we have an online store. We do offer um music production.
Um, we have a rehearsal space Um, we are more so on the production side. We're more so um pre-production and post-production We get like um artists songs ready for like the real producer, you know, um, some of the yep Some of the legwork, um, we help artists with some of the like the beginning stages Um making sure that their songs are ready to be presented to the producer making sure that um The producer or the artist has scratch tracks for the producers to work with. Um, that's more so what we are Um, we do have our music ministry program. We do music ministry consulting.
Um, I have done sound design again. Um, I'm certified in that My mom sent me my mom sent me to the disc She sent me to the disc. So although that's been, you know 2008 steel, you know, um, it's a part of what we do. We also pride we do offer um, private lessons and um That's about it.
So that's that's enough But and us being a firm that's how we started. That's how we we kind of morph into what you see now Again, we have a rehearsal space here. Um, we have um, audio sales. We have um, you know, uh, we do private lessons And we do do some recording here Look, I love the fact that you know, a like, you know, your mom plays such an integrate, um part in your life in general And for her to have that impact on your business, right?
Um, you know, going from grabbing you when you were going too far in music Um, so then it was like kind of guiding you right in this show like, you know, I say it in an intro Um, you know, we're here to guide you to your purpose, bouncing faith in business, the guide you to your purpose And I think sometimes we overlook the need and the purpose of a guy And I always think about movies like I I try to look for a meaning in everything like everything And one of my favorite movies growing up was the karate kid. Yes, my tool Are you filming? Yes I tell people like mr. Miyagi was so dope because he was giving daniel jules Like straight gyms in life, but it didn't look like it So like when you had daniel washing the floor washing the car painting the fence and daniel got frustrated Yo, I came here to learn karate Why my pen is a thing?
But mr. Miyagi was able to show him like it's the fence that teaches karate and It reminds me somewhat of what you said about money money is that result? Yep And so many times again, we have the focus on money from the stand in the negative sense And I spent a lot of time on this show talking about finances from a healthy perspective But that negative unhealthy perspective about money is to love it and look at it and chase it And you'll do anything for it But if you focus on that purpose that guy created you for and really focus on perfecting your craft Yeah, you know, you can produce that but it takes those guys I just want to say shout out to the guys out there Yeah, people who play a role in people's lives to just kind of nudge them or you know have them paint a fence But you're really teaching them karate. So I think that's really amazing I love what y'all do like I know one of the things y'all do is like people can rent out a live rehearsal space.
I believe Yep, yep That's dope to me. That was the thing that caught my attention and I had been actually been back to writing music myself a little bit later I'm like, man, I gotta get I just haven't been performing music at all I'm like, man, I gotta find a reason to rent that space out just because I love the concept Um of what you do and I and um just want to tell people it's in labonia So it's already trade metro Detroit area musicians and artists out there I know that you need somewhere to rehearse But these gigs and these events that you have coming up and this is your the music firm Detroit is definitely something worth Supporting and checking out not just because I want to say this a lot of times we talk about support Like just the support and it's like all it's because it's dope It's because you have that. Thank you. You know, I mean, so so I appreciate that and shout out to the people in the comments can't Face, um, he said that was the go to teach the movies.
I feel it facts. Um, Look, Courtney. I definitely um enjoy talking to you today before we get out of here Um, if you could just sell the people out there, you know, what are some pros and cons of being a christian entrepreneur and kind of wearing that, right? What kind of advice can you give out there for those either aspiring christian entrepreneurs Or those struggling with doing what god called them to do because the world make it looks so much better Just as like put your christianity aside and go after that.
What kind of advice or um experience can you share that will be valuable to somebody in that position? Well, the first thing I could say is something that god said to me, you know, when I'm like, okay, lord, I'm kind of out here out here, you know, I'm minster You know, some people, you know, they they they try to elevate me to different things and I got these secular artists coming in here to rehearse I mean, I've had some some some um, some prevalent gospel artists in here as well. But what do what do I do? Oh, he said, court me For god so loved the world Not and I think in the church, you know, we hear like the world and we just it's derogatory, you know, it's like it's derogatory It's like the world don't be the world, you know, but for god so loved the world That he gave his only begotten son that whom so ever should believe on him should have turned a life and not perish so As a christian entrepreneur, you have to love the world and when we say the world we mean the people Yes, we don't mean the the world in its demonic influences Right, that's that's not what we mean.
That's not what god so loved the world means It doesn't mean that we love the kingdom of darkness that comes with the world No, no, no, but for god so loved the world even the atheist even the the rock star I mean, I've had rock groups coming here, you know, um, I had a student, you know, that had dark side on his laptop, you know And I just asked him. I said what's up with dark side? Well, that's just my DJ name and that's just my this and that's just my this and I was able to minister to him And I was able to you know kind of just tell him, you know, what that What he was drawing to himself by having that on his laptop and the next time he came to his lesson He didn't have that but I don't know if he would have gone got that from in the church. So it's like You have to know as a christian business owner that God has called you To change the world He's called you to impact the world and to make a difference and um, that's just what I intend to do I intend to make my mark on the world.
That's what I tend to do I love it I'm gonna tell you what's dope about that, right? Because these are things that I call it necessary struggles like me as believers There are some necessary things that we should struggle through it great areas in life And I love the fact that you explained that clearly Um, and one of the reasons this goes back to the business in the bilingual right? We learned the church way sometimes to a fault where we can't operate outside of it now For me one of the advantages that has helped me see this is again A partially being home church because I was growing up because it kind of has church without, you know, some of the extra things, right? Um, which I'm not saying it's good or bad.
It's just a different experience Um, but then also, you know, I've been in corporate america since the day I graduated college, you know So working at a fortune, you know, 100 company and kind of growing my career and working on, you know With various people it has taught me the business side, right? You can understand in that A lot of business is about you being true to your brain. So the example I have is, you know Let's say you work at a fast food restaurant and you're a manager You can be a christian and do that. Yeah, now you shouldn't be a christian and do that if they would cause you to do something outside of your christian Absolutely, but you can give an atheist a piece of chicken There's nothing simple about that.
And so I love what you kind of outlined in your business is because you are clearly christian I read your website like it is there right? Yeah, and sometimes we focus so much on the people that we're ministering to that it's like hey Like they not save you right? And so but we have to be careful about positioning ourselves and I think some of us make excuses to put ourselves Um in positions that we can't handle and I'm gonna say Um, you know, I always think about like a lot of times when people talk about these type of things They always talk about going out into the world, but they'll be talking about going out and doing things that they actually like doing I call me to the club. Oh, you and they're dropping it too.
So I don't think that's where you want you right? Right, we'll call us to those places I know people that go outside of abortion clinics and things like that like absolutely World needs ministry. Yep. The world needs you to be a minister.
That's so many of us And we're not ministers Like bro, you got a like I could call you here But sometimes he's gonna call you places you don't like we always think he calling us to the places we enjoy like So I just love that you broke down like the fact that like hey This is a business and that's what I love about business because it teaches you how to speak that language and do it fluently Yeah, in a way where you're not compromising your christianity to the service and provide this opportunity But also meet and talk to people in the world. So thank you for sharing that. All right, Courtney before we get out of here Any what's the let you know? I'll give you kind of the floor for any kind of last words that you want to share with guys people out there I have thoroughly enjoyed this and again for anybody who's maybe catching his live towards the end This is gonna be on apple podcast five to five.
Really. I want you to go to youtube at inspire guys people We share daily clips every every day every other day whatever it is to the people watching on instagram live Sorry, that's the one place I can't see your comments live I kind of hate how instagram does it because I can't see the comments to the end and then once the video ends I can't respond to it. So I always see a bunch of comments and people talking on instagram and I'm like, yeah I'm sorry, but Courtney for you before you get out of here What is the last thing you want to leave the people with about you know, whatever message that you have to kind of inspire the world? There was one last message that you were given to people to inspire them.
What would that be? One last message I would say Always keep guys the center of your life the head of your life But follow your dream follow will not but but in addition to that follow your dreams Follow your dreams go after it go after this never too late You know, you're never um too far gone You know go after your dreams go after what it is that you want to do and and don't stop don't stop Thank you so much Courtney To the show y'all check out the music firm v trade calm Follow Courtney on social media working. They find you I got you under court underscore charia on instagram is that instagram yep, that's instagram and then for um facebook is just my name Courtney charia mark y'all check out Courtney charia re more and the things that she's doing Courtney Please do stay in touch. Don't ever hesitate to reach out to me.
Thank you for I saw a first time of you We're down here down michael court and thank you for watching. Thank you for everybody in the comments. I'm showing love to court And I saw your people wasn't here. Um, you know showing a lot of love.
So thank you all for tuning in and please do stick around We got a lot more things like this coming but um this has been an amazing time. So y'all have an amazing amazing amazing